Tomlin Admits ‘Change’ is Coming, QB Situation at top of Steelers Priority List
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To say the Pittsburgh Steelers are at a crossroads is an understatement.
Last weekend’s 28-14 loss to the Baltimore Ravens ended yet another promising season in disappointing fashion. It brought the 2024 season to a screeching halt, with another early playoff exit being a rough reminder that the Steelers are miles away from closing the gap with their division rivals.
As they turn the page, they head into what is expected to be a critical offseason. One key area is going to be trying to figure out how to solidify things at quarterback, especially after facing their third-straight offseason where that position remains a significant question mark.
After swinging and missing on Kenny Pickett in the draft back in 2022, the Steelers put their eggs in a basket that included former Seahawks and Broncos Russell Wilson, who joined the team last offseason on a one-year deal. From there, they acquired Bears quarterback Justin Fields in a trade for a conditional sixth-round pick from Chicago to round out their quarterback room.
Both of those guys are now at the end of their deals, which has both of their situations uncertain heading into next season.
Kyle Allen, who the team signed with the club back in March on a one year deal, is also a free agent. So the Steelers have to figure out exactly what the plan will be heading into 2025 as they compete in a division that has been dominated by Lamar Jackson and the Ravens in recent years.
How they’ll be able to climb back on top is the biggest question. While Mike Tomlin has been able to continually guide his club to a winning record, his lack of postseason success is becoming a serious topic of conversation in Pittsburgh.
For a team that prides itself on stability having only had three head coaches since 1969, the question now is whether or not Tomlin’s message is becoming stale, which has put him at the top of the list of frustrations for fans who are tired of watching other teams advance in January.
Tomlin spoke to the media on Tuesday and said he and the team are turning the page to 2025, and they’re obviously disappointed with how things ended. However, it sounds as if he’s proceeding as if he’ll be back on the sideline for the Steelers next fall.
“Certainly disappointing to be conducting this business today, but I don’t view it as misfortune, to be quite honest with you,” said Tomlin. “Particularly at this level in this business and game. There’s football justice. You get what you deserve and so we’re here and we’re here for really tangible reasons. We didn’t involve in the right ways, we didn’t strike the right chords at the right time, particularly down the stretch. So, we’ve been eliminated from a single-elimination tournament.”
“So, for us, it’s about assessing the reasons why, doing an assessment of every component of what it is we do here, and the manner in which we do it.”‘
One word that Tomlin did use a fair amount was “change,” which given how things have gone as of late may be one of the most important things Steelers fans will be expecting after seeing “more of the same” in recent years.
“Certainly there’s change that comes at this time of year,” said Tomlin. “Certainly, there’s change when you don’t have the desired outcome. So those are just the realities of the business. I’d imagine there’s going to be some things that change around here, at a lot of levels.”
Tomlin has already met with owner Art Rooney and GM Omar Khan, marking the beginning of what he expects to be “multiple conversations” about the team’s strategy for 2025.
One key component was looking at the number of injuries they’ve had in recent seasons. Pittsburgh endured a fair amount of “soft-tissue” injuries in 2024, with Justin Fields, Russell Wilson, and George Pickens among a number of players who were dealt with those injuries last season. Oddly enough, Tomlin and the Steelers actually made changes to their strength and conditioning staff last offseason, letting go of their entire staff and rebuilding it with a younger group this past offseason.
Clearly, that didn’t work in their favor, and it will be one of many areas that will be interesting to watch this offseason.
“I think changing in coaching staffs are a component of our business,” said Tomlin. “I certainly don’t think all of our coaches are under contract, and so change is a component of it, and I acknowledge it. But we’re at the very early stages of making those types of decisions and discussions.”
When asked if Tomlin felt the team might be “stuck,” along with his thoughts on how they’ll move forward, Tomlin disagreed with that assessment.
“I don’t know that I’ve looked at it from that perspective,” he said. “I’m certainly disappointed that I’m not working to prepare to play this week and I’ve certainly felt that in recent years. But ‘stuck’ is kind of a helpless feeling and I don’t know that I feel helpless.”
“I don’t know that I’m ready to be overly optimistic or sell optimism to you either. I’m just acknowledging what transpired and what has to happen and what is beginning to happen and acknowledging the complexity and the amount of work that’s ahead of us. Certainly feel capable. But definitely don’t feel in the mood for optimism or the selling of optimism. I don’t know if that’s appropriate. It’s disappointing not to be working, so that’s where we are.”
Tomlin acknowledged on Tuesday that he and Steelers brass have already carved out time later this week to discuss their plans moving forward. He talked about the contract status of their current quarterback room, and it sounds like that group might indeed look different next season.
“Obviously, we don’t have a quarterback under contract, so we’ve got some major discussions there,” said Tomlin. “It was a really good experience with the three quarterbacks that were on our roster this year, individually and collectively. We certainly are open to considering those guys.”
“But there’s a lot of work ahead of us, and the major work, obviously, starts first and foremost with just understanding what our options are. What the field looks like in terms of free agency. What the draft pool looks like and then beginning the process of decision-making based on known variables. Omar and I have got a half a day carved out here this week just to begin that component of the discussion.”
What that means for Fields or Wilson remains to be seen. Tomlin didn’t give either player a ringing endorsement, but did mention that he was pleased with how both guys approached things.
“Just their professionalism,” said Tomlin what it was about those two where he felt like either player might be able to take them to the next level. “Their approach to business, their relationship to the game was an encouragement in that regard.”
For now, it sounds like the Steelers will be exploring all their options, which will likely indeed include a lot of changes in the coming months.
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